Philosophy
In our practice we understand chiropractic as a holistic healing method that takes all levels of a human being into consideration: Body, mind, emotions and soul can never be considered completely separate from each other, but form a unified whole.
Therefore, one of the essential basic assumptions of holistic chiropractic is that there is an enormous degree of interaction between these layers. A trained chiropractor not only includes them in the anamnesis, but also knows how to target and purposefully influence them. Modern scientific findings increasingly confirm that chiropractic, with this holistic view of the human being, was far ahead of its time and perhaps for this reason is today one of the most successful healing methods in the world.
Many people know chiropractic primarily as a physical method known for quickly relieving pain and restoring mobility. This impression is not wrong, of course, but also only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the actual treatment spectrum and the beneficial impacts chiropractic can have. The purpose of this article is to provide an insight into the philosophy behind chiropractic and the ways in which we practise holistic chiropractic in our practice.
“With a deep understanding of these relationships, the chiropractor does not merely treat symptoms but strives to get as close as possible to the actual cause of the problems in order to facilitate the body’s path to self-healing.”
The Physical Layer of Chiropractic
The term “chiropractic” means “done by hand,” which accurately describes the foundations of this treatment method: through gentle manual impulses, chiropractic aims to dissolve blockages and tensions in a natural and non-invasive way, thus restoring function and mobility. A key focus during diagnosis, treatment, and prevention is the spine.
The spine is the central supporting structure of our body. It connects the legs, trunk, arms, and head and is essential to the overall biomechanics of our body. An immobile spine demands compensation mechanisms from the body, leading to strong tensions in muscles and fasciae, which then frequently affect the entire organism. As a result, even regions of the body that are far away from the cause can exhibit symptoms, for example due to posture adjustments made in response to pain. With a deep understanding of these relationships, the chiropractor does not merely treat symptoms but strives to get as close as possible to the actual cause of the problems in order to facilitate the body’s path to self-healing.
The spine, however, is not only important due to its bony structure, but also contains the most important nerve pathways of our organism. The nerves located in the spinal cord control practically all areas of our health. Disturbances in the spine can affect the nerves exiting the spinal cord and consequently, the function of the organs and structures innervated by these nerves. Through the structure of the spine, chiropractic can have a direct influence on the central nervous system and, thus, on almost all areas of our health.
The Mental-Emotional Layers of Chiropractic
The neurological effect of chiropractic described above also explains part of its impact on the psyche. The nerves protected by the spine have a significant influence on all organs of the body, including the brain, and affect the synthesis and release of hormones and neurotransmitters in many of them.
At the same time, muscular tension strongly correlates with mental and emotional tension. It is rare to find an emotionally tense person that does not express the same tension physically, and vice versa. Recent research has investigated this reciprocal relationship by specifically looking at posture and has shown that it directly influences our mood. By releasing tension throughout the body, chiropractic supports a natural, upright posture, which, in turn, is associated with positive mental states (see Miragall et al., 2020).
Lastly, the relief of physical pain in itself has of course a strong emotional component. Few things weigh us down more emotionally than persistent pain, as sufferers can woefully attest. (Von Korff and Simon, 1996).
The Energetic-Spiritual Dimension of Chiropractic
Many chiropractors today give little importance to the energetic-spiritual dimension of chiropractic, but it was actually a central concern for the founder of the method, Daniel D. Palmer. Just as the detailed knowledge of human anatomy, which he acquired from conventional medicine, was a central foundation for him, so were vitalistic principles, which are reminiscent of Far Eastern healing arts, but can also be found in Western vitalism. These principles assume that the body is animated by a central life energy (chi, prana, life force), with the spine acting as a central energy channel. Many aspects of these teachings were consistent with the observations Palmer made while treating his patients.
Drawing on vitalism, Palmer developed one of the most important basic assumptions of chiropractic: inner intelligence. This inner intelligence is understood as the intelligence of life itself, an ordering force inherent in all living things. Palmer’s assumption was that health automatically follows when this force is allowed to operate and flow freely in the body. The goal of chiropractic is therefore not only to correct physical misalignments, but to ensure that the life force can flow freely again and that the body can heal itself through the use of its inner intelligence (Palmer, 1910).
Chiropractic here explicitly includes a spiritual dimension in its holistic understanding of humans, which sees in an individual more than a biological machine made to execute purely mechanical processes.
The basic understanding of holistic chiropractic can be derived from the idea of inner intelligence:
- The body is a self-regulating and self-healing organism.
- The inner intelligence works through the nervous system, from which all other functions of the body are regulated. As a result, a wide variety of ailments can also be influenced via the nervous system.
- Malfunctions of the spine affect the function of the whole organism and inhibit the self-healing power of the body.
- Health is the natural state of a human being. It is automatically established when the body can function without disturbances.
- The goal of chiropractic is to support the body and its inner intelligence in the process of self-healing. The chiropractor does not heal the body, but only assists the body in restoring its own balance and healing itself.
Sources:
Miragall, M. et al. (2020) ‘Effect of an upright (vs. stooped) posture on interpretation bias, imagery, and emotions’
Palmer, D. (1910) ‘Text-book of the science, art, and philosophy of chiropractic, founded on tone’
Von Korff, M. and Simon, G. (1996) ‘The relationship between pain and depression’
“Drawing on vitalism, Palmer developed one of the most important basic assumptions of chiropractic: inner intelligence. This inner intelligence is understood as the intelligence of life itself, an ordering force inherent in all living things.”
